Many people believe that God is a killjoy. They believe He is strict, made up of rules, and relentless. While God does have moral codes that we should want to follow, in no way is God a killjoy, nor does He condemn fun. In fact, it is only because of God that we can have fun. If God did not want us to have fun, He would not have created it as an emotion, a feeling, or an experience.
God does not want us to be sad, depressed, or upset. He wants us to have fun, to be joyful always, and to be happy. Despite the common argument that God does not promise us happiness, it is important to note that God does not want us to be miserable. Rather, the Lord died for us to have an abundant life (John 10:10). This abundant life is full of joy, love, and fun.
Defining Fun
In order to know what fun is, we first have to define it. "Fun" is defined by Oxford Languages as “enjoyment, amusement, or lighthearted pleasure.” When we see this definition, we notice that there is nothing sinful or wrong about enjoyment, amusement, or pleasure. However, we also have to look beyond the basic definition and look at motives.
As long as you aren’t doing anything that goes against God, there is nothing wrong with having fun. As a believer, you won’t view immoral behaviors or sinful things as fun. If a person sees lying, cheating, or stealing as fun, then one may question if they are a believer or not. Having fun, in and of itself, is not problematic, but one would say it depends on how someone defines it.
If you define fun as being mean to others, participating in immoral behavior, or living in sin, then "fun," in this sense, would be wrong—not because having fun is sinful, but rather, what you have to do to have fun is sinful. As Christians, these types of things should not bring us enjoyment. Instead, they should bring conviction and guilt. If you can only have fun by doing something bad, it is time to turn to Jesus.
Repent and dedicate your life to following Him. Becoming a Christian does not mean that your life is now boring or full of rules. Rather, it means that you have an abundant life. The abundant life that Jesus gives you at the moment of salvation is far better than anything this sinful world has to offer. Trust in Him and know that true freedom, joy, and happiness are found in Him alone.
Having Fun in Accordance with Biblical Truths
Fun that brings glory to God is the type of fun that is in accordance with the Bible. From biblical standards, we can see that participating in sin should not be fun nor should it be accepted. Rather than engaging in these types of behaviors, try to do activities that truly bring you fun but leave no regrets, guilt, or shame. Anything that leaves you with these feelings is not actually fun.
True experiences of fun can be done through meeting up with friends at a park, going to a Bible study with church friends, or listening to music that brings glory to God. Moreover, you can have fun by exploring God’s creation and meeting new people. All of these things are fun, yet there is nothing sinful about them. As you can see, Christians do have fun, but it is not the type of so-called fun that the secular world enjoys.
For Christians, being dishonest, cheating on your spouse, or getting drunk is not fun. If a person thinks any of these things are fun, it could be that they have not experienced the saving grace of Jesus. Having fun should be moral, true, and wholesome. Many people might think this means “rules,” but it really doesn’t. Once a person comes to know Jesus, they don’t want to do these things.
Biblical Guidelines
Part of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit in our lives is that He develops the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23). The fruit of the Spirit includes love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. As we can see, none of these attributes are sinful. We need to use the fruit of the Spirit as a guideline for our lives, including how we see fun. If we are engaging in activities that are done in love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control, then we know there is nothing sinful about what we are doing.
In addition to the fruit of the Spirit, we can also use the guideline Paul outlines for us in Philippians 4:8, “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.” When we are having fun in a way that is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, and praiseworthy, then we are following God and truly living an abundant life.
Living Life to the Fullest
Life to the fullest is found in Jesus. Many people might think that following Jesus is boring, but then it just shows they don’t know Jesus. Nothing about Jesus or following Him is boring. Following Jesus and knowing Him is how we truly experience an abundant life. This abundant life is found in knowing Christ, being loved by Him, and knowing that He will always be with us.
The abundant life that Jesus has for us starts at the moment of salvation and will extend for all eternity. In other words, we do not have to wait until after we pass away to have the abundant life Jesus died for us to have. Rather, the full life Jesus died in order for us to have has already started and will continue forever. Throughout your life, you will have abundant life because of Jesus.
This does not refer to having an abundance of material possessions, but rather, the abundance of knowing Jesus. Once we know Jesus as our personal Savior, we will want to serve Him, follow Him, and bring glory to Him. The fun that we have also follows this truth as we would never find fun in doing something that is sinful. Yet again, having fun is not sinful as long as it is not rooted in sinful behaviors.
Having fun can be seen in walking in a field full of flowers, getting a call from a loved one, or spending time with a pet. In order to know what the Bible says about having fun, you have to acknowledge that sinful behaviors are not fun. Truly fun activities are not rooted in sin. Having fun is seen by doing things that you enjoy, such as listening to music, cooking, or reading.
When you are following what the Lord says, you will be able to have a full life. A life living in sin or in what the secular world calls “fun,” is not a life that God wants you to have. This type of life will only bring shame, guilt, and remorse. Choose to have fun in a way that honors God. There is nothing wrong with having fun as long as it is not rooted in a sinful heart or a sinful motive.
Jesus died in order for us to have an abundant life, but this abundant life is not found in sin. The Lord came to the earth in order for us to have life and to have it to the fullest. The devil comes only to steal, kill, and destroy. Take a careful look at both of these things and see who you are truly following. If you find that you are not following Jesus, know that you can turn to Him. Jesus gives you an abundant life—the devil and the world will only destroy you.
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Vivian Bricker obtained a Bachelor of Arts in Ministry, followed by a Master of Arts with an emphasis in theology. She loves all things theology, mission work, and helping others learn about Jesus. Find more of her content at Cultivate: https://cultivatechristianity.wordpress.com/.